We chat with author S.K. Ali about Fledgling, which is the first book in a gripping duology and introduces a fractured world on the brink of either enlightenment or war.
Hi, S.K.! Welcome back! How have the past two years been since we last spoke? What have you been up to?
FLEDGLING! I’ve been up to FLEDGLING. Wait, I don’t mean I was trying to fly; I mean, I was writing another novel, a tome-of-a-novel.
From the moment I finished promo events for my last YA novel, I tried exclusively focusing on completing Fledgling: The Keeper’s Records of Revolution, which is a huge genre shift for me. I went from being a writer frolicking in happy romanceland to navigating a dystopian story set in a post-apocalyptic world. We’re talking almost opposite ends of the literary spectrum, sob.
Your latest novel, Fledgling, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Searing, multi-layered-multi-POV, gripping, hero/villain-origin-stories-before-the-sequel, ensemble cast
(I’m a writer so please please please allow me the right to hyphenate everything and anything I want to.)
What can readers expect?
They can expect an epic story of a fractured world on the edge of revolution, told from different vantage points but in a way that always moves the story forward.
Where did the inspiration for Fledgling come from?
If we were to go way back, the inspiration came from a question I wondered as a child, watching images of famine on my TV screen: Why is the world so unfair?
A more recent spark is my interest in the increasing role of technology and tech companies in political surveillance, oppression, and global injustice and exploitation.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I loved writing the “nesting” characters, characters trying to make a comfortable, cozy, secure home in the midst of the chaos, and turbulence that surrounds them. While I reveled in writing these homebodies hustling and bustling to organize their spaces, I also had a distinct feeling that um, maybe this is too-chill to read, when there are way more energetic characters to follow, characters on the go-go-go! (like Nada!), but I also knew it was vital to give readers little bits of breathing space here and there too. Like in the Tangled Servant’s comfy cave for example.
This is your first foray into dystopian! What was the genre shift like when it came to writing?
Can I say it involved a lot of weeping? And bouts of muttering “why did I want to do this to myself again?” But then I’d snap back and swallow my sobs, remembering my personal goal to write every genre I’d loved reading before. And so, I’d return to studying conventions of the genre, plotting structures, character profiles, and especially how to do multi-layered storytelling. It was a simultaneous period of learning and writing. And crying.
Can you tell us a bit about your process when it came to worldbuilding?
My process was very visual. I had clear images of what the stratified (Upper Earth, Lower Earth, the Bridge and Underground) world of Fledgling looked like and I spent a lot of time finding photos that fit or came close to these images in my head. As a rule, when I write any book, I need to clearly see what I’m describing so my pinterest board is always a crucial part of my process, but it became especially so for a book as visually-rich as Fledgling is.
What’s next for you?
FLEDGLING! Next, I’ll be up to FLEDGLING. Wait, I don’t mean I’ll be trying to fly; I mean, I’ll be writing another novel, a tome-of-a-novel: the sequel to Fledgling: The Keeper’s Records of Revolution.
(Er, I have a feeling I’m the only one who finds this repetition funny.)
Lastly, what books have you enjoyed so far this year and are there any that you can’t wait to get your hands on?
This year, I loved Kareem Between by Shifa Saltagi Safadi, and A Map for Falasteen by Maysa Odeh, illustrated by Aliaa Betawi; these are books for younger readers. And I know I’m late with this one, but I can’t wait to read The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen. And an upcoming title I’m excited for is The Matchmaker by Aisha Saeed.
